Typist: BethanyOver many years of dog training, I have learned that the most important things for a dog to know are the most difficult to train. The reason for this is usually that the most important things for dogs to know take massive amounts of patience and consistency to train. The degree of training difficulty for paramount dog behaviors can apply to many, many issues, such as barking, jumping, and recalls, but today I am tackling loose leash walking. I have also learned through trial and error (mostly error) that not only does training polite walking take obsessive consistency and saintly patience, individual dogs learn loose leash walking in their own way. My three very different dogs have each thrived learning loose leash walking with three separate positive reinforcement loose leash walking techniques.

Pause
The "Be A Tree" positive reinforcement loose leash training method is simple, in theory. When the leash is tight, stop walking. When the leash is loose, walk. It sounds so easy but it takes a lot of patience for many weeks of consistent walking and training. Though like all training done positively and well, it works! This was the method I most used in teaching Wilhelm to walk with a loose leash. He is my most consistent loose leash walker but he does have a whining problem when I stop and it isn't about training him. Of course I have conditioned him to believe if he is good we will get going again. This ends up being difficult when we stop to chat with a neighbor or go to an outdoor event that involves just standing there. Wilhelm doesn't like being a tree, he wants to move! I have found that if I do some sort of other tricks with him as soon as we stop for a reason that isn't a tight leash, the dachshund forgets that he was supposed to be rewarded with more walking.

Distract
Getting a leash reactive dog to walk on a loose leash is difficult but paramount. Fortunately Brychwyn responds very well to distractions from whatever is making him react or tighten his leash. Depending on the trigger, Brychwyn responds well to the distraction of scooping up treats I drop as we hurry down the sidewalk. If whatever it is he wants is better than treats in a loose leash position, getting the mind of my corgi distracted can keep him walking politely as well. A quick "sit," "down" or "stand" takes his mind off of what he wants to bark and lunge at... sometimes. Other times, we just hurry past and I wait to praise him after his leash is loose and he has stopped his frenzied barking. So goes leash reactive dog life. But at least most of the time, thanks to Brychwyn's love of food, that leash is loose.

"Tell me and I forget. Teach me and I remember. Involve me and I learn."
~Benjamin Franklin

Redirect
Huxley will quickly forget what it is that made him pull on the leash when I turn around. This positive reinforcement loose leash training method is also very simple and requires massive amounts of patience, consistency and a need to never actually get anywhere. This is probably why Huxley still frequently pulls on his leash. But with a 90lb dog at the end of the leash, I have ended up being a fallen tree. And no treat in the world has yet proven more interesting than his need to mark a certain tree. Fortunately, I know that when Huxley starts to drag me, a quick turn around rapidly gets his attention back on how to walk politely... most of the time. I used to click and treat as soon as the leash got loose again and now I expect his attention to come back to me and our walk. As I look back over the years, my collie does redirect quite quickly now and we can even do a relatively fast 360 to continue on our way.

To anyone who knows my dogs, the loose leash walking training techniques that match their personalities make perfect sense. While I am proud that my dogs are unique individuals, it does make training even more difficult. Loose leashes, the most important thing for my active, traveling dogs to know, continues to be a patience and consistency test for this trainer. However, I love learning as much as my dogs do, so we're in it together. It's a good thing we love our daily dog walks!

How does your dog do at loose leash walking?
What positive reinforcement training technique works best for helping your dog walk politely on a leash?

Welcome to Positive Reinforcement Pet Training Week October 2015. This month we are sharing stories about positive training methods for loose leash or polite walking. Like every month, any and all positive training based posts, comments and shares are welcome. The Linky below is open all week so if you are a blogger, add a post and if you are a positive pet training enthusiasts, click around. The next hop begins November 2nd and our theme will be training and fitness. Happy training!

JoinCascadian Nomads,Wag'N Woof Pets&Dolly The Doxiefor a Walk Your Dog Week Celebration! Please click this link or on the badge for the Commit to Walk and Walk Your Dog Week linky lists. Commit to walk now through 10/7 and be eligible for prizes! Share your #DogWalkingWeek stories through 10/15! Enjoy those dog walks everyone!

Each of us is different. Katie was a danger as a younger dog and had to go to school at 3 to figure out loose leash walking. She walked mostly off leash, but on leash she pulled like crazy, but she mastered it. I pulled as a youngster, but then figured it out on my own not to pull. Bailie is like a sled dog, but she is also getting better. The stop until the leash is loose or turning around when pulled works really well, but it is hard to train with more than one dog, so there isn't a lot of time to work on it as Mom doesn't have enough hours in the day to take even more walks but it isn't too bad.

NOW I know why every dog I've ever had has not been good at loose leash walking....it's that whole thing about needing all that patience. I just don't have that much. However, the only technique I've used is the like a tree one, and I've never been able to out-wait my dog. At least you've now given me some other methods to try, though I wish you'd had one in there that didn't require so much patience! Just kidding, of course...I am starting to learn to have a bit more now that I do more training.

I use all of those techniques but the hardest part is my husband's lack of patience with them. So, my dogs behave well when I walk them alone but pull when my husband is present. They know the pattern all too well!

Nala is a bit smaller than your collie, but I feel your pain at being a fallen tree! I think that being a tree is for the birds. I also think that one of the major challenges of loose leash walking is how different my comfortable pace is from my large dog's--I bet that's why your collie has been so challenging to teach, too!

This is such a helpful post on loose leash walking. Because every dog is so different. And if you read a training book, much of the time the author will stand firm with one technique. If it doesn't work, you feel like a loser.

I'm sorry I missed commenting! Ruby and Boca have very different walking styles, too. "Be a Tree" doesn't work with Ruby either - she will stop pulling long enough for me to move and it starts all over again.

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